Few and far between: A harvesting machine being put to use in Nizamabad. | Photo Credit: K_V_RAMANA more-in Shortage of harvesters and increasing wages for crop cutting have turned a cause of concern for farmers this season. Apart from that, gales and hailstorms, occurring almost every day in some part of the State or the other, have aggravated the problem. This year, the harvest season began almost at the same time in the first week of April in all places including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Nellore and Miryalaguda — where paddy is transplanted in vast tracts — and demand for harvesters has been high. Till last yasangi (rabi) harvest used to begin 20 days earlier here than in other places. After the cutting was over, harvest machines used to go to those places. Farmers were comfortable as machine owners would cut the crops at leisure and did not demand higher rates. Farmers here hire machines from Karnataka as they [track harvesters] are suitable when the field is wet and when unseasonal rain occurs. “Here we have only tyre or tractor-mounted vehicles which are not suitable for our lands. They are used for maize and red jowar cutting. A number of vehicles already left for Miryalaguda and Nellore and Karnataka harvesters stopped coming as the season began there also. Farmers are afraid as the gap between the demand for harvesters and their availability is wide,” said Parvathaneni Charan Gopal, who engages them from Karnataka for farmers here in every season. Farmers launched paddy cutting in Varni, Rudrur, Kotagiri, Banswada, Navipet, Nandipet and Bodhan area on April 5 itself and activity would peak in the next couple of days. The per hour charge for harvester, which was ? 1,800 last season, increased to ? 2,200 and ? 2,400 this season. When harvesters were plenty, they used to cut crop till 10 p.m. but now they need to work round-the-clock. “As rate of diesel per litre here is ? 7 higher than in Karnataka and land owners also provide food and accommodation there, harvester crews do not like to come to our area,” said Charan Gopal. Absence of profitable price for paddy in the market, increased input and overall farm investment and now abnormal crop cutting rates have made agriculture unremunerative , lamented M. Mohan Reddy, a farmer and Congress leader.

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